Rachel Notley Will Head To B.C

The Premier wants her province to have a share of the taxes and construction jobs, to be sure, but in addition, The Globe and Mail has learned, the B.C. government has quietly scoped out terms with Kinder Morgan Inc. for investment in a new fund – raised by tolls on the oil shipped by pipeline, or another mechanism – that would be earmarked for environmental protection and restoration.

Earlier this month, the federal government announced a $1.5 billion marine safety plan that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said will make Canada a world leader in protecting the Pacific, Atlantic and Arctic oceans.

Justin Trudeau’s promise to let backbenchers to be the voice of their constituents in Ottawa is being tested as B.C. Liberal MPs grapple with the political fallout from the decision to approve Kinder Morgan’s Trans Mountain pipeline.

“I’ve always said from the very beginning that if the five conditions on any of these projects are met, the project can expect B.C.’s support”.

The pipeline is expected to be a key issue in May’s B.C. election and potentially puts Notley at odds with her NDP colleagues as they challenge Clark’s Liberal government.

If that happens, Clark said her government will support the Kinder Morgan project.

As for meeting the condition of a world-leading spill response system…he says the B.C. government and Kinder Morgan are well on the path to checking that off the list.

“That’s wonderful news about all the jobs, but I’ll just quickly add that it will be very hard to show up to work when the earth has obliterated itself in a shitstorm of carbon emissions”, said Raina Vanstone, director of Environmental Defence. “Certainly not consistent with the language I’ve been hearing from the Tsleil-Waututh and other First Nations here in the Burrard Inlet”, he said.

She said she is now onside with the $50 price, but said it is still linked to progress on projects like Trans Mountain. “I know that they are disappointed, but they also know that I will not stop working on their behalf”.

“I personally think having this pipeline go ahead will provide a lot more employment opportunities for those in British Columbia”, Ashton said.

“It is something that people in my riding feel strongly about, and it will cause me problems”, she said.

If conditions are met, Clark’s stamp of approval could cost her party votes in the May provincial election in major urban centres that have opposed the pipeline, including Vancouver, Burnaby, North Vancouver, Port Moody, Victoria, Surrey, Langley, and Abbotsford. To me, I think it’s important that we consider it, but it has to be done safely. Those consultations produced “significant accommodation agreements” that will see indigenous people take part in committees ensuring Kinder Morgan meets its approval conditions, she added.

There has been no public statement from Clark yet, though Trudeau says he spoke with the premier by phone and they agreed on the importance of a balanced approach for the development of natural resources along with environmental protection and the creation of jobs.

The decision, Corrigan said, “bows to the pressure of the oil lobbyists at the expense of Burnaby’s-and all of Canada’s-economy and environment, while ignoring the science-based evidence as to the harm this pipeline project will cause on land and water, even without a spill”.

“This is a defining moment for our project and Canada’s energy industry”, said Ian Anderson, the president of one of the company’s subsidiary.